Our middle one.  He is getting big so fast.  He turns five in just two short months.  And I recognize and appreciate his fiercely independent spirit.  It is a beautiful thing to watch.  But he shakes off the hand I can only get him to hold when we cross the street three quarters of the way across.   I can’t walk this independent soul to his classroom on his tenuous second day of preschool. He did give me a fierce hug when I asked if it was okay and then his classroom assistant encouraged him into his room, let him open the big heavy door by his big, capable self and he disappeared into his own separate life for two and half hours. 

When I got back in the car, my last little one tearfully said “Mama, I want to go to preschool!”  I laughed.  It was funny…because she is never going to preschool.  Well she might, but I am sooo going with her.

getting ready

As the days have gotten shorter, the normal brother sister fighting has gotten farther and farther apart.
I have reminded Jack and Brayden all summer that they won’t get to be together during the week during the fall winter and spring, so make sure to spend the time loving each other and not fighting each other.  Charlotte is far to young to understand, but Jack remembers the separation from his brother and Brayden does too.
If they feel no sting of separation from mom (which thank the Lord Brayden does, he would tell me he missed me while he was at kindergarten), surely they feel the separation from each other.  And while growing up is so necessary and sweet, separation between these two brothers causes them some anxiety, and a bit of sadness.

 Jack gets quieter as the days the days get shorter.  He has another big separation coming up too and he is unsure and nervous about his own pre-school adventure.  I assure them that they will do wonderful and remind them to be gentle and kind and brave.  They already know everything they need to know to be good at school, now they just need to go.  And I remind myself of the same things as I plead with myself not to cry for the hundred and 18th time in the day.

And now the day is here and the preparations are over;  if we haven’t done it by now, it just isn’t going to happen, and they probably don’t need it anyway, much like the 32 glue sticks and 64 sharpened pencils we had to send to school.